Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, August 17, 1995 TAG: 9508170025
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By DIANE STRUZZI STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Authorities found Darren L. Cobbs, 24, at the Long Branch Mobile Home Park on Virginia 707 late Tuesday, seven hours after he is accused of abducting his estranged girlfriend at gunpoint in Southwest Roanoke.
Cobbs suffered an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound to his leg when he fired several shots during the incident, Roanoke police said.
Wednesday, police confirmed the woman's name as Cherie Harriston. They said she was either 19 or 20 years old. She was unharmed, and returned to her Roanoke home late Tuesday.
About 3 p.m., a man grabbed Harriston from in front of the store where she worked. Harriston is an assistant hairdresser at Hair Trends Inc. in Hunting Hills Plaza. The man threatened to kill her, fired several shots and pushed her into a waiting car occupied by two teen-agers, according to Roanoke police.
The teen-agers drove the couple to the mobile home park, then left and notified police at the Roanoke County substation at Tanglewood Mall, police said.
Franklin County sheriff's deputies arrested Cobbs without incident about 10:30 p.m. He had just walked outside the trailer as Franklin County Special Operations Response Team members mobilized around the park, according to Lt. Ewell Hunt of the Sheriff's Office.
Cobbs walked close to Harriston, at one point holding her hand. When he was arrested, he asked to give Harriston a kiss, Hunt said.
He never did. Deputies immediately took him into custody, arresting him for abduction and three unrelated charges from Roanoke County - possession of marijuana, purchasing an alcoholic beverage for a person under 21, and three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
Deputies found a small-caliber handgun on Cobbs at the time of his arrest.
by CNB